Stephen Clay McGehee at a TEA Party event holding By What Constitutional Authority sign.
The mid-term election is over and just about everyone with even a bit of sanity is praising the snubbing of the Democratic agenda, so I may as well add my two cents. I would sum it up by saying, “not so fast on the celebrating” – here’s why:
1) The Republican party is the same party that has been in power until quite recently, and what do we have to show for it? If the Republicans are the “conservatives”, then what exactly are they trying to conserve?
2) Even if this truly is a new group of principled leaders who really want to put those principles into action, they are dealing with a deeply entrenched bureaucracy that has every incentive to see them fail.
3) A good case can be made that America has already passed the tipping point, and no matter who is in power and no matter what they do, it is too late to change the final outcome. The end might be delayed and it might be made a bit gentler, but the American Empire will still end.
4) The TEA party movement has been a powerful force in this election, but what happens when the Republicans cannot or will not deliver? To whom will they then turn? Can they maintain their independence in the face of a failure of what they helped bring about?
5) The tax structure and the voting population have heavily stacked the odds against any real change 1.
- the top 1% of Americans pay 40% of federal income taxes
- the top 5% pay over 60%
- the bottom 50% pay less than 3%
- the bottom 47% pay no federal income taxes
With a tax structure like that, what possible chance does real reform have? Nearly half the population is just fine with living off the labor of those who are paying the federal bills. No, despite the good results of this mid-term election, I am not optimistic for the long term.
6) Demographics play a huge role in what group gets in power and stays in power. The demographic group that built this nation – Western European Whites – is becoming an increasingly small part of America. Heavy Black voter turnout, fueled by Obama, put the liberal Democrats in power. Despite Obama’s appeals, Blacks largely stayed home for this election. That is a powder keg waiting for a match to push this country even deeper into Socialism.
So what might the near future hold? My guess is that we may see a constant shifting back and forth as people with short memories get disillusioned and hope that change – any change – will be good. If things hold together long enough, people may become disillusioned enough to make “minor parties” such as the Constitution Party or the Southern Party a viable alternative.
It all comes down to who has the right to vote. America has, almost since the beginning, moved to include ever growing numbers and classes of people as voters. That has a very real effect on the direction this nation has taken, and (in my judgment) it has not been for the better. The real death of State’s Rights came with the election of U.S. Senators by popular vote – in the name of “democracy” and “fairness”. Before that, they were elected by the state legislatures, which assured that they would be guarding the power of the states.
What does this have to do with the objectives of Confederate Colonel? Next to nothing, but I just wanted to add my own opinion to the discussion.
You have some excellent points here. Will anyone pay any attention? Probably not.
Your points, however, are still just as valid and I have used them as a “borrowed thought” in the Passing Thoughts section of my site.
Thanks for your help.
Peter Kelley
Sir: The real question is how determined are the voters who ousted the Democrats, particularly at the House and the State levels, to keep the pressure on to cut spending and return responsibilities to local governments and individuals.
You are correct that there are competing cultures within America fighting for political power [as there always has and will be]. Our best hope is that libertarians and the religious right will continue to ally themselves, witness the Tea Party [using the Republican Party as a vehicle is acceptable] to thwart the secular, socialist, Anti-traditional Americans who control the Democrat Party.
We in the South must be willing to ally ourselves with those in the North, particularly in the lower MidWest, who most closely share our conservative values. While secession does seem like a good idea [just leave us alone!] it isn’t and never will be practical or lasting. Someone is going to control the continent politically, economically, and militarily and no, because of the Mississippi River and long coastline, the South can’t be like Canada. For better or worse, our fate is shared with people in New England, the upper Midwest, and on the West Coast. Our best hope, our only hope, is to find common ground with enough people in the North to prevent the national government from exercising tyranny over our folkways, our culture, our property, and our freedom. In other words, to divide and figuratively speaking, “conquer” the North/West Coast, and not be divided and conquered ourselves. This means we, here in the South, will have to resist the temptation to use Washington D.C. as a means of aggrandizement, both regionally and personally—-do you hear us TRENT LOTT and LINDSEY GRAHAM!!! If we sell out to Washington D.C. again as we did during the New Deal and Nixon’s “Southern Strategy”, we really will be, “Gone with the Wind.”
Good points, sir. The end result will depend on the timing of events. Right now, I see economic and political and cultural issues competing in a race to the bottom. I am not as optimistic as you are that people will see what is right – and then do what is right. Given the choice in a bet, my money would be on people acting in their own short term self interest at the expense of their nation, their culture, their children’s future, and Almighty God.
We can clearly see what needs to be done. In order for that to happen, there must be a massive cultural shift in the opposite direction from where it has been heading. I do all I can to try to make that happen, but I am not naive enough to think it really will. I am afraid that people will not wake up and see the folly of their ways until they are left with virtually nothing and turn to the God of The Bible rather than to their idols in Hollywood.
We need the bottom 50% to pick up more of the Load.
“We need the bottom 50% to pick up more of the Load.”
That would be nice, but it won’t happen. They aren’t going to vote for politicians who will make them pay their fare or get off the train. There are now more of “them” than of “us”. The liberal politicians have built up a very dependable voter base by buying their votes with the tax money from those of us who work and pay the bills. These are people who have no morals, no ethical standards, and openly defy God. What is it about “Thou shalt not steal”.that they don’t understand? Nothing, of course. They simply choose to steal from those who keep this country from completely coming apart at the seams.
It simply will not happen.
I know Bro McGehee and it makes me shutter.